George Bush School of Government and Public Servicehttp://hdl.handle.net/1969.1/33752015-03-31T22:04:07Z2015-03-31T22:04:07ZReaching More for Less: Modernizing US International Food Aid Programshttp://hdl.handle.net/1969.1/1536872015-02-07T06:40:37Z2015-01-01T00:00:00ZReaching More for Less: Modernizing US International Food Aid Programs
The Food for Peace program has saved millions of lives around the world for more than a half century and has been perhaps the most powerful and visible symbol of American generosity to those in need. The question is not whether the program has been successful in saving lives, but whether it can be improved to make it more effective, more efficient, and faster, so that more lives can be saved? The author, Director of the Scowcroft Institute of International Affairs and a former USAID administrator, makes the case that the program should have more flexibility to procure emergency food relief locally and regionally.
2015-01-01T00:00:00ZWater Use for Hydraulic Fracturing: A Texas Sized Problem?http://hdl.handle.net/1969.1/1536862015-02-06T06:38:07Z2014-12-01T00:00:00ZWater Use for Hydraulic Fracturing: A Texas Sized Problem?
The state of Texas could face a 2.7 trillion gallon shortfall of water by 2060. Hydraulic fracturing (HF) requires large amounts of water for each well. Tax incentives should be offered to companies that substitute brackish groundwater for fresh. However, HF technology is not the only or even the most significant contributor to the longstanding problem of water stress in Texas. Accurate and transparent data reporting on all water consumption (irrigation, municipal use, mining, and others) and policy changes to address inefficient water use practices in all sectors are needed. Without broad water regulation efforts the state will continue to suffer from overuse of its most precious resource—water.
2014-12-01T00:00:00ZThe War on Poverty Needs a New Maphttp://hdl.handle.net/1969.1/1536852015-02-06T06:38:10Z2014-12-01T00:00:00ZThe War on Poverty Needs a New Map
Since the start of Lyndon B. Johnson’s War on Poverty, the federal government has spent vast sums of money trying to lower U.S. poverty rates. Yet, despite the repeated allocation of massive financial resources, overall poverty rates have barely budged. There are two particularly pervasive possible explanations for that lack of success. First, official measures of poverty are geographically biased and financially incomplete. Second, federal policy relies heavily on those biased and incomplete measures to allocate aid. Despite the difficulties, adjusting the federal poverty thresholds used to determine eligibility for anti-poverty programs is the right thing to do. If the U.S. is going to win the War on Poverty, it needs a new map.
2014-12-01T00:00:00ZFree Trade in Oil and Natural Gas, The Case for Lifting the Ban on U.S. Energy Exportshttp://hdl.handle.net/1969.1/1536842015-02-06T06:38:10Z2014-11-01T00:00:00ZFree Trade in Oil and Natural Gas, The Case for Lifting the Ban on U.S. Energy Exports
Not only should the US lift its ban on exporting oil and natural gas in light of today’s economic and political climate, but it was wrong to ever ban such exports in the first place. The US should cease to view its energy resources as a purely domestic issue but rather a global one that impacts not only global prices in energy but also international affairs. Energy security is a world-wide problem, not a US, China, or EU problem, and we are all dependent on the world oil market.
As the US looks to extricate itself from energy dependence on the Middle East, increase its energy security through trade and innovation, and maintain a robust economy, the benefits of lifting the ban on US energy exports outweigh the costs say the authors. The writers propose that allowing US exports could add 8.7 million barrels per day of crude oil to the world market while also reducing possible shocks to the world economy. Griffin and Gause also believe that lifting a ban on US natural gas exports could reassure Western allies and send a message to Russia to stop holding Europeans hostage to its high gas prices in times of political strife.
2014-11-01T00:00:00Z